Surgical light cover and light handle adapter

ABSTRACT

An assembly for attachment to a conventional operating room light fixture includes a handle and a disposable cover. The handle has an upper portion adapted to be attached to the light fixture. The handle further includes an annular rigid disk at a central portion thereof and an annular ring provided below the annular rigid handle flange and defining a groove therebetween. A grip portion is provided at a lower portion of the handle. The assembly also includes a sterile, disposable cover, including a hollow grip cover having a closed end and a flexible flange formed integrally with the grip cover at an open end thereof and adapted to be fitted over the grip portion of the handle and advanced thereon. The disposable cover further includes a circular rigid cover flange attached to the flexible flange and curved away from the rigid disk when the grip cover is fitted over the grip portion of the handle, with the rigid disk restraining further advancement of the rigid cover flange. The rigid cover flange also includes an opening corresponding to the open end of the grip cover, and a plurality of snaps provided along the circumference of the opening and adapted to be fitted within the groove to securely fit the disposable cover over the handle. For industry-standard handles available with some operating room light fixtures, a light handle adapter may be attached to the standard handle to secure the disposable cover onto the handle. The light handle adapter is slid up the handle toward the light fixture. The light handle adapter may be affixed to the light handle by an adhesive or other mechanical means, and the disposable cover is secured to the light handle adapter.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 07/843,144, filedon Feb. 23, 1992, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,456.

The present invention relates in general to hospital surgery roomequipment and specifically to a replacement handle for a surgical roomlight fixture and a disposable cover for use with the replacementhandle.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

A sterile environment must be established and maintained in an operatingroom. Everything which is in the operating room sterile field must besterilized. Certain reusable items are sterilized after each use, whichmay be very expensive and troublesome. As a result, it is frequentlymore economical to use disposable sterile items as opposed tosterilizing reusable items.

Unfortunately, it is neither practical nor economical to dispose oflarge operating room fixtures, such as lighting fixtures, after eachoperation. Since any item which is touched by any person who enters thesterile field of an operating room must be sterilized, there must be away of maintaining the sterility of such large fixtures. Alternatively,steps must be taken to prevent surgical personnel from contactingnon-sterile portions of such fixtures that are outside the sterile fieldof an operating room.

Operating room light fixtures are provided with reusable handles for useby surgical personnel to adjust the angle of incidence upon theoperating areas or to bring the light closer to the area which is beingoperated on during surgery. The lighting fixture handle is normallysituated in the middle of the light housing and depends therefrom. Sincethe handle is being constantly manipulated by surgical personnel duringsurgery, it must be maintained sterile. Surgical personnel must also beprevented from contacting other portions of the lighting fixture otherthan the sterile handle. These other portions are nonsterile and are notlikely to be sterilized because they are outside the sterile field of anoperation. There are currently a number of attempts to address theseproblems.

First, removable handles of operating room light fixtures are providedso that, in between operations, the handles may be removed andsterilized prior to the next operation. However, this is particularlydisadvantageous because it requires very expensive personnel time toremove, clean and sterilize the equipment, expensive materials to wrapit, and sterilization itself could also be troublesome and costly.

Second, sterile disposable handles are provided and are then disposed ofafter each operation. Examples of such disposable handles are disclosedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,844,252 to Barron et al. and 4,974,288 to Reasner.However, it is rather expensive to replace sets of operating room lightfixture handles after each operation, which will increase the cost ofthe operation to the patient. Further, these handles are bulky,requiring more storage space, which is limited at hospitals, and createmore waste to the environment. Also, removal of the bloody,"contaminated" handles exposes hospital personnel to the contaminatedsurfaces.

Third, due to the high cost of the above two alternatives, steriledisposable covers have been provided for covering an operating roomlight fixture handle. Examples of such sterile disposable covers aredisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,605,124 to Sandel et al. and 4,976,299 toBickelman. However, each of these disposable covers suffers from somedrawbacks.

More particularly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,124 discloses a disposable cover18 having a cylindrical grip 24 and integral flange 28, and shaped in amanner to surround and fit the corresponding portion 29 of the handle20. The flange 28 may either be flat-shaped or bell-shaped, depending onthe corresponding shape of the handle. Adhesive can be applied to theinterior portions of the flange 28 in order to firmly attach the cover18 to the handle 20. This patent also discloses an adapter kit foradapting the handle cover for use with the light fixture. The adapterkit comprises an internally and externally threaded bushing 234 and aninternally threaded adapter handle 220. The bushing 234 is threaded onits inside to attach to a mating threaded bolt extending from the lightfixture. The bushing 234 also has outside threads which are used toattach the bushing 234 to the adapter handle 220.

The disposable cover disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,124 suffers fromseveral drawbacks. First, since the flange 28 is flexible and is adaptedto the shape of the handle 20, the disposable cover does not have aprotective guard which prevents the nurse's or surgeon's hand fromsliding past the flange portion 28 and contacting non-sterile portionsof the surgical room light fixture. Second, the use of adhesive tofirmly attach the cover 18 to the handle 20 is troublesome. Third, dueto the flexibility of the flange 28, the nurse's or surgeon's glove maybecome contaminated while applying the cover to the light handle.Fourth, the cover itself may become contaminated from prior folds whileit is being applied over the light handle if the cover edge contacts thenon-sterile light handle flange.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,976,299 discloses a sterile disposable cover 11 having acylindrical hollow member 12 and a guard 13. The guard 13 acts toprevent a surgeon's hand from contacting non-sterile portions of a lightfixture. The cover 11 also includes a retention number 17 whichpartially closes the opening of an opened end 15. The retention number17 may be a circular plastic disk which is adhered within an annularrecessed portion 18 in the guard 13. However, referring to FIG. 1 ofthis patent, the disposable cover 11 of this patent suffers from thedrawback that the guard 13 does not appear to be sufficiently rigid andis adapted to the shape of the handle and/or light fixture. Thus, it ispossible that the surgeon's hand may slide past the guard 13 and contactnon-sterile portions of the light fixture. In addition, the retentiondisk 17 inhibits the application of the cover to the correspondinghandle, as well as the removal of the cover. It also inhibits theapplication of a second cover over the first one if necessary in case ofaccidental contamination during the surgical procedure.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In order to accomplish the objects of the present invention, an assemblyincluding a handle and a disposable cover is provided for attachment toa conventional operation room light fixture. The handle includes anadapter having an upper portion adapted to be attached to the lightfixture, and a lower portion coupled to a grip portion at an upperportion thereof. A central ring-shaped stud is provided between theadapter and the grip portion, and has an annular rigid disk and anannular ring provided below the annular rigid disk to define a groovetherebetween. The stud has a channel which allows the lower portion ofthe adapter to pass therethrough to engage the grip portion.

The assembly according to embodiments of the present invention alsoincludes a sterile, disposable cover, including a hollow grip coverhaving a closed end and a flexible flange formed integrally with thegrip cover at an open end thereof. The disposable cover further includesa circular rigid cover flange attached to the flexible flange, the rigidcover flange curved towards the grip cover and including an openingcorresponding to the open end of the grip cover, and a plurality ofsnaps provided along the circumference of the opening. The grip covermay be fitted over the grip portion of the handle and advanced thereonso that the rigid cover flange curves away from the handle rigid disk,with the rigid disk restraining further advancement of the rigid coverflange, and the snaps may be fitted within the groove to securely fitthe disposable cover over the handle.

The combined surgical light fixture handle and disposable coveraccording to embodiments of the present invention provides an economicaland simple means for maintaining the sterility of an operating roomlight fixture handle, and for preventing a surgeon from contactingnon-sterile portions of the light fixture while applying the cover tothe handle or during the manipulation of the light during surgery.Furthermore, this cover cannot become contaminated during itsapplication to the handle. A second cover can be applied over the firstcover to maintain sterility of the light handle if the first coverbecomes inadvertently contaminated. The easy application of the secondcover minimizes unnecessary delays during surgical procedures.

The handle of the present invention has only a few basic components, issimple in construction and is easy to manufacture. The one-piececonstruction of the disposable cover of the present invention is alsosimple and easy to manufacture. This cover may also be collapsed forreduced sterilization costs, easy packaging, storage, transportation,and disposal. The locking mechanism which interacts between the handleand cover of the present invention allows the disposable cover to befirmly secured to the handle while preventing the surgeon's hand fromcontacting any non-sterile portions of the light fixture. The curvatureof the rigid cover flange induces a surgeon's hand to slide towards thecenter of the cover and away from non-sterile portions of the lightfixture.

If standard, conventional light handles are already in place orincorporated into the light fixture, an adapter may be attached to thelight handle so that the disposable cover may be easily fitted over thereusable handle and secured in place without requiring that the handleitself be replaced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects, advantages and features of the invention will becomeapparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiments whenread in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an operating room lighting fixtureequipped with an exemplary embodiment of the handle and disposable coverof the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the handle and disposablecover of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the disposable cover of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the disposable cover of FIG. 2 in acollapsed orientation.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the disposable cover of FIG. 2 asused with the light fixture handle of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a light handle adapter in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the light handle adapter of FIG. 6as used with a standard light handle and the disposable cover of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description is of the best presently contemplatedmode of carrying out the invention. This description is not to be takenin a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustratinggeneral principles of embodiments of the invention. The scope of theinvention is best defined by the appended claims.

Referring to FIG. 1, a surgical lighting fixture 10 is comprised of abody 12 and has a manual handle and cover assembly 14 for use bysurgical personnel, for example a surgeon designated by 16. The lightingfixture 10 is suspended over the head of the surgeon 16 performing thesurgical procedure. The surgeon may make adjustments to the lightingfixture orientation, including the angle of light incidence, during thesurgery by manipulating the cover and handle assembly 14.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the handle and cover assembly 14 iscomprised of a replacement handle 18 for a lighting fixture and asterile disposable cover 20. The handle 18 may be attached to theunderside of the light fixture body 12, as shown in FIG. 1, and thesterile disposable cover 20 may be fitted over the handle 18 to ensurethe sterility of the handle for manipulation during surgery.

Referring to FIG. 2, the handle 18 is comprised of three primarycomponents, an adapter 22, a central stud 24, and a handle grip portion26. The adapter 22 has a bore 28 which has internal threads 30 forreceiving a large threaded bolt (not shown) from the body 12 of thelighting fixture 10. The adapter 22 also has a lower threaded portion 32for threadingly engaging the inner threads 34 of the handle grip 26. Thestud 24 has an annular rigid disk 36 and an annular ring 38 providedslightly below the annular rigid disk 36, with the space between theannular rigid disk 36 and the annular ring 38 defining a groove 42. Thestud 24 is provided with a channel 44 which is adapted for the lowerthreaded portion 32 of the adapter 22 to pass therethrough. The handlegrip portion 26 has a bore 45 which is provided with inner threads 34.The surface of the handle grip portion 26 may be provided with smallclosely-spaced indentations 46, some spanning across the entirecircumference of the grip portion 26, to facilitate a positive gripthereon. It will be fully appreciated by those skilled in the art thatthe shape, size and configuration of the handle grip portion 26,including its surface, may be varied without departing from the spiritand scope of the present invention.

The handle 18 is assembled by slipping the lower threaded portion 32 ofthe adapter 22 through the channel 44 until the annular disk 36 abutsagainst a stop ring 48 located at the uppermost part of the threadedportion 32. At this point, the threads of the threaded portion 32 extendfrom the bottom of the stud 24. The combined adapter 22 and stud 24 istaken and the lower threaded portion 32 is applied with glue and thenrotated to threadingly engage the threads 34 of the bore 45 of thehandle grip portion 26. The combined handle 18 is then taken and engagedinto the body 12 of the light fixture 10 by turning the threaded upperbore 28 to receive a threaded bolt (not shown) of the light fixture 10.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, the sterile disposable cover 20 has aflexible, collapsible, thin-walled elastic grip cover 52 with a closedend 54. The grip cover 52 is cylindrical and is formed integrally with aflexible flange 56 which is also made of the same material as the gripcover 52. The flexible flange 56 is attached by, for example, heatsealing or thermal bonding, to a rigid cover flange 58. The rigid coverflange 58 is angled towards the grip cover 52 as shown at 64 in FIG. 4.Since the flexible flange 56 is attached to the rigid cover flange 58,the flexible flange 56 also assumes the angled orientation. The rigidcover flange 58 is provided with a central circular opening 60 whichacts as an opening to the opened end of the hollow internal volume ofthe grip cover 52. Four hook-shaped snaps 62 are provided inspaced-apart fashion around the internal circumference of the opening60.

In operation, the sterile disposable cover 20 may be used to cover thehandle 18 by sliding the hollow grip cover 52 through its opened endover the handle grip portion 26 of the handle 18 (see FIG. 5). The gripcover 52 is slid upwardly until the portion of the rigid cover flange 58at the opening 60 abuts the annular rigid disk 36 of the handle 18. Atthis point, the four hook-shaped snaps 62 may be snap-fitted within thegroove 42 to secure the grip cover 52 in place over the handle gripportion 26 of the handle 18. The rigidity of the cover flange 58 and itscurvature or angling away from the disk 36 prevents a nurse's orsurgeon's hand from slipping past the cover flange 58 and contactingnon-sterile portions of the light fixture 10. In particular, thecurvature of the cover flange 58 induces a nurse's or surgeon's hand toslide towards the center of the cover 20 and away from the non-sterileportions of the light fixture 10. The disk 36 acts as an impedimenttowards the further advancement of the cover 20, and also provides morestability towards the restraint provided by the cover flange 58.

The cover 20 is formed from a plastic material and then packaged andsubsequently sterilized. The material used for the grip cover 52 may becomposed of any thin-walled elastic sterilizable material such asplastic, synthetic rubber, silicone, or latex or any other material thatwill remain impervious even while exposed to any conventionalsterilization processes. The material should also have the capability ofbeing stretched and expanded slightly without tearing to fit varyinghandle sizes within a prescribed range of sizes. The thickness of thegrip cover 52 and the flexible flange 56 is about 3-10 mils. The rigidcover flange 58 is made of a rigid plastic material and is approximately20-50 mils thick. It is fully appreciated by those skilled in the artthat any conventional manufacturing process with mechanical or thermalbonding capabilities may be used to attach the flexible flange 56 to therigid cover flange 58.

It is understood by those skilled in the art that the adapter 22, thestud 24, and the grip portion 26 of the handle 18 may be provided indifferent shapes and sizes, depending on the preferences and/orrequirements of the hospital and/or surgical personnel. Thecorresponding bore 45 and the threaded lower portion 32 are all made ofa standard size to allow one or more of the components to be usedinterchangeably while retaining the other components. For example,depending upon the hospital and/or the surgical personnel, it may bepreferred to have a handle 18 with a wider rigid disk 36. In thissituation, the surgeon may prefer the stud 24 with a wider rigid disk36, while retaining the original adapter 22 and grip portion 26. Thecomponents of the handle 18 may be made from anodized aluminum or otherlight metal or rigid plastic materials.

The cover 20 may be easily packaged and stored by pressing down on thecollapsible grip cover 52 so that the grip cover 52 may be folded overand pressed flat against the cover flange 58 as shown in FIG. 4. Thus,the resulting cover 20 takes the circular shape of the cover flange 58,and its simple one-piece construction allows it to be easily placed in arelatively flat package for storage or disposal, without the need forfolding. The compactness of the flat packaging used for the cover 20results in reduced sterilization, packaging, disposal and transportationcosts, and in increased savings of space. This also allows the cover 20to be more customer-friendly.

The handle and cover combination of the present invention provides astable and secure fit of a sterile disposable cover 20 onto areplacement handle 18 of a surgical light fixture. The rigidity of thecover flange 58 and its curvature away from the handle flange 38 ensurethat a surgeon's hands will not slide past the rigid cover flange 58 ofthe cover 20 and onto nonsterile portions of the lighting fixture 10while applying it to the handle 18 or during the manipulation of thehandle 18. The locking or securing mechanism of the snaps 62 in thegroove 42 also ensure that the cover 20 will not fall off easily and canbe securely held in place during the duration of the surgery. It shouldalso be understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art that arelatively flat handle flange 38 having little or no curvature can beprovided without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentinvention.

Both the handle 18 and the cover 20 are also simple in construction.Furthermore, the one-piece construction of the cover 20 is easy tomanufacture, package, store and dispose.

In a different embodiment of the present invention, a light handleadapter may be used with an industry-standard light handle that may notbe provided with a predefined groove, as in groove 42 of the replacementhandle 18 described above. Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, a light handleadapter 70 forms a cylindrical ring which is adapted to slidably fitover a standard, reusable light handle 80. As shown in FIG. 6, the lighthandle adapter 70 has an annular ring 72 coupled to one end of acylindrical body portion 74. The opposite end of the cylindrical bodyportion 74 extends outwardly into a flared, funnel-shaped flange 76. Theflared flange 76 is adapted for slidably receiving the free end of astandard light handle 80, as shown in FIG. 7. The flared flange 76 andcylindrical body 74 structure may be slid toward the lighting fixture.

Depending upon the shape of the light handle 80 as it extends toward thelighting fixture, the slidability of the light handle adapter 70 may belimited by the diameter of the light handle 80 relative to the lighthandle adapter 70. For example, some standard light handles may becomesmaller in diameter as they extend from the lighting fixture to the freeend of the light handle. Thus, if the light handle adapter 70 of thepresent described embodiment is selected so that the diameter of thelight handle adapter 70 slidably fits over the smaller end of the lighthandle 80, as the handle adapter 70 is slid up the light handle 80toward the lighting fixture, the advancement of the light handle adaptermay be limited by the increasing diameter of the light handle 80. Inanother example, the light handle 80 may be configured in the shape of acylinder having a constant diameter throughout the length of the lighthandle. In such case, the light handle adapter 70 may be slid up to thepoint where the length of the light handle 80 itself prevents furthermovement toward the lighting fixture.

The light handle adapter 70 is affixed to the light handle 80 by meansof an adhesive 78, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. Various adhesives may beused for securely affixing the light handle adapter to the light handle.Other mechanical means such as a set screw 82 may also be used alone orin conjunction with an adhesive. For example, one side of a double-sidedadhesive 78 may be attached to the light handle adapter 70 so that whenthe light handle adapter 70 is slid into position at a desired locationalong the length of the handle 80, the opposite side of the adhesive 78may be affixed to the light handle 80. Preferably, the adhesive does notextend to the cylindrical body portion 74 of the light handle adapter70, but is affixed on one side only to the flared flange 76. In thisway, the adhesive may readily be affixed to the light handle 80, whilesimultaneously allowing slidable movement of the cylindrical bodyportion 72 of the light handle adapter 70 along the length of the lighthandle 80 until the desired position is reached.

As shown in FIG. 7, an annular ring 72 is coupled to the end of thecylindrical body portion 74. As described above with respect to FIG. 5,the sterile disposable cover 20 is used to cover the standard lighthandle 80 by sliding the hollow grip cover 52 over the light handle 80until the rigid covered flange 58 at the opening 60 abuts the base ofthe flared flange 76. The sterile disposable cover 20 is then secured tothe light handle adapter 70 by the four hook-shaped snaps 62 whichengage the lip formed by the coupling between the cylindrical bodyportion 74 and the annular ring 72. As discussed above, the rigidity ofthe cover flange 58 and its curvature or angling away from the flaredflange 76 prevents a user's hand from slipping past the cover flange 58and contacting non-sterile portions of the light fixture or light handleadapter 70. If the disposable cover 20 becomes inadvertentlycontaminated during a surgical procedure, another cover may be slippedover the one already in place.

If desired, the light handle adapter may be removed from the lighthandle by prying the adhesive loose and sliding the light handle adapteraway from the lighting fixture, off of the light handle 80. Any type ofindustrial solvent may be used to clean the adhesive from the lighthandle 80. The light handle adapter will not need to be replaced forreasons of sterility because, when in use, only the sterile disposablecover 20, as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, will be handled.

The light handle adapter may be made of any rigid material sufficient tosecure the hook-shaped snap 62 over the protruding annular ring 72.Various types of adhesives or mechanical means may be used to secure thelight handle adapter to the lighting fixture. Preferably, a double-sidedadhesive tape which is sufficiently strong is used to securely fastenthe light handle adapter 70 to the light handle 80. Adjustment of thelighting fixture by a user grasping the sterile disposable cover willnot cause the sterile disposable cover 20 to be removed. After eachusage of a new sterile disposable cover 20, the disposable cover 20 maybe removed simply by peeling off the cover with the contaminated surfaceinverted to contain any contaminants. The disposable cover may then bedisposed. To prepare for the next usage, a new disposable cover can beslipped over the handle and fastened to the light handle adapter.Furthermore, in case of accidental contamination during surgery, asecond cover may be slipped over the first one to avoid any unnecessarydelays.

While the description above refers to particular embodiments of thepresent invention, it will be understood that many modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit thereof. The accompanying claimsare intended to cover such modifications as would fall within the truescope and spirit of the present invention.

The presently disclosed embodiments are therefore to be considered inall respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of theinvention being indicated by the appended claims, rather than theforegoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning andrange of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embracedtherein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A light handle adapter for attachment to aconventional operating room light fixture having a light handle, thelight handle adapter comprising:a cylindrical body portion having firstand second ends, and an inner diameter and an outer diameter, the innerdiameter being larger than the widest diameter of the light handle toprovide for slidable movement of the cylindrical body portion along thelength of the light handle; an annular ring coupled to the first end ofthe cylindrical body portion, the annular ring having an outer diameterlarger than the outer diameter of the cylindrical body portion; a flangeportion extending from the second end of the cylindrical body portion;and a securing means coupled to the light handle adapter for securingthe light handle adapter to the light handle.
 2. The light handleadapter according to claim 1, wherein the flange portion is flared toreceive the light handle.
 3. The light handle adapter according to claim1, wherein the securing means comprises an adhesive material.
 4. Anassembly for attachment to a conventional operating room light fixturehaving a light handle, the assembly comprising:a light handle adapterhaving a cylindrical body portion comprisingfirst and second ends, andan inner and outer diameter, the inner diameter being larger than thewidest diameter of the light handle to provide for slidable movement ofthe cylindrical body portion along the length of the light handle, anannular ring coupled to the first end of the cylindrical body portion,the annular ring having an outer diameter which is larger than the outerdiameter of the cylindrical body portion, a flange portion extendingfrom the second end of the cylindrical body portion, and a securingmeans coupled to the light handle adapter for securing the light handleadapter to the light handle; and a sterile disposable cover having anopen end, the sterile disposable cover comprising a hollow grip coveradapted to be fitted over the handle and advanced thereon, a circularrigid cover flange extending about the open end of the steriledisposable cover, and a plurality of protrusions provided along theinner circumference of the open end of the sterile disposable cover, theprotrusions adapted to engage the annular ring of the light handleadapter to securely attach the sterile disposable cover over the lighthandle.
 5. The assembly according to claim 4, further comprising aflexible flange formed integrally with the hollow grip cover at the openend of the sterile disposable cover, the flexible flange being coupledto the rigid cover flange.
 6. The assembly according to claim 5, whereinthe flexible flange is coupled to the rigid cover flange by bondingmeans.
 7. The assembly according to claim 4, wherein the light handleadapter is made of a rigid material to securely engage the open end ofthe sterile disposable cover.
 8. The assembly according to claim 4,wherein the securing means comprises an adhesive.
 9. The assemblyaccording to claim 4, wherein the securing means comprises a set screw.10. The assembly according to claim 5, wherein the flange portion of thelight handle adapter is flared to receive the light handle.
 11. Thelight handle assembly for use with a light handle of a conventionaloperating room light fixture, the light handle assembly comprising:adisposable flexible cover for covering the light handle; and a lighthandle adapter means for securing the disposable cover onto the lighthandle; wherein the light handle adapter means comprises: a cylindricalbody portion sized to slidably fit around the light handle, a flangeintegrally extending outwardly from one end of the cylindrical bodyportion, an annular ring coupled to the other end of the cylindricalbody portion, wherein the plurality of snaps on the disposable coverengage the annular ring to secure the disposable cover onto the lighthandle.
 12. A light handle assembly for use with a light handle of aconventional operating room light fixture, the light handle assemblycomprising:a disposable cover having a flexible cylindrical hollow gripcover having an open end, a flexible flange formed integrally with theopen end of the grip cover, a circular rigid cover flange coupled to theflexible flange, and a plurality of snaps provided along thecircumference of the open end; and a light handle adapter means forsecuring the disposable cover onto the light handle, the light handleadapter means having a cylindrical body portion with two ends sized toslidably fit around the light handle, an annular ring coupled to one endof the cylindrical body portion, and a flange integrally extendingoutwardly from the other end of the cylindrical body portion, whereinthe plurality of snaps on the disposable cover engage the annular ringto secure the disposable cover over the light handle.
 13. A method formaintaining the sterility of an operating room light fixture to beadjusted manually by a user, the method comprising the steps of:couplinga handle means to the light fixture, the handle means for controllingthe adjustment of the light fixture and comprising an upper portionadapted to be attached to the light fixture and a grip portion; forminga groove between the upper portion and the grip portion of the handlemeans; covering the handle means with a sterile disposable cover, thesterile disposable cover covering the handle means such that the usercontacts only the sterile disposable cover, the sterile disposable covercomprising an elongated cylindrical grip cover having an open end;extending a flange outwardly from the open end of the grip cover;extending a plurality of protrusions along the inner circumference ofthe open end of the grip cover; and securing the sterile disposablecover over the handle means as the protrusions engage the groove formedin the handle means.
 14. A method for maintaining the sterility of alight fixture handle of an operating room light fixture to be adjustedmanually by a user, the method comprising the steps of:sliding a lighthandle adapter over the light fixture handle toward the light fixture,the light handle adapter comprising a cylindrical body portion havingtwo ends, an annular ring coupled to one end of the cylindrical bodyportion; extending a flange outwardly from the other end of thecylindrical body portion; sliding the flange end of the cylindrical bodyportion toward the light fixture; affixing the light handle adapter tothe light handle; covering the light fixture handle with a steriledisposable cover, the sterile disposable cover covering the lightfixture handle such that the user contacts only the sterile disposablecover, the sterile disposable cover comprising an elongated cylindricalgrip cover having an open end; extending a flange outwardly from theopen end of the grip cover to prevent the user from contactingnon-sterile areas on the light fixture handle; extending a plurality ofprotrusions along the inner circumference of the open end of the gripcover; and securing the sterile disposable cover to the light fixturehandle adapter, wherein the plurality of protrusions on the steriledisposable cover engage the annular ring on the light handle adapter sothat the sterile disposable cover is not easily removed from the lightfixture handle when the light fixture is adjusted by the user.